Liquid cooler



J1me 1930- -T. s. MERRYLEES ,7

LIQUID COOLER Filed Sept. 14, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 11 5 i TIC-RI- ZAZ Z9 11- /;.U 11 21.

"WITNESSES 20 TM SHIVZZNTORZ-e mas r S I L ATTORNEYS.

June 3, 1930.

T s. MERRYLEES LIQUID COOLER Filed Sept. 14, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Q INVENTOR: Tlwmas S Merry lees,

/ i BY 44/ 1 2). JTTORNEYS ble side walls of metal Patented June. 3, I

THOMAS S. MEBBYLEES, OI YEADON, PENNSYLVANIA mourn coonnn Application filed September 14, 1828. Serial No. 805,949.

My invention is concerned with the use of solid carbon dioxide or the like as a refrigerant in the cooling of liquids.

Broadly speaking the aim of my invention 5 is to secure, through provision of" facilities in connection with liquid coolers, the advantages inherent to the use of solid carbon dioxide, which, as is well known, is a powerful refrigerant having a temperature, in the neighborhood of -100 E, which is available on the market in compact form, conducive to easy handling, and which evaporates entirely wlthout leaving any liquid residue whatsoever.

A further object of my invention is to enable conversion to the use of solid carbon dioxide, of standard coolers of the fountain type wherein the flow from an inverted storage container is chilled incidental to traverse through a direct communicating refrigerating coil exposed within a receptacle designed for accommodation of a comparatively large quantity of pack ice.

How the above desideratum, as well as other important advantages, can be conveniently attained in practice will be manifest from the detailed description hereinafter when taken in connection with the attached drawings wherein Fig. I is an axial sectional view, taken as indicated by the arrows 1-1 in Fig. III, of a fountain water cooler of the coil type converted in accordance with my invention for use of solid carbon dioxide.

Fig". II isa sectional-view in staggered planes at right angles to that of Fig. 1, taken substantially as indicated by the arrows II-II in the latter illustration.

Fig. III is a part plan view of the cooler with one component of the top cover removed,

and a part horizontal section taken as iridi-' cated b the arrows IIIIII in Fig. I; and

Fig. V is a .perspective view of a therma transfer element forming a part of my conversion means. 1 Y

With. reference to these illustrations, the numeral 10 desi ates comprehensively, the casing of the coo er, the same being of cylindric configuration and constructed with douwith thermo-insulation interposed as at 11.- At the top, the receptacle 10 is bridged by. a crossbar 12 which afiords support for the contiguous edges of semi-circu ar top cover sections 13,14. A flat horizontal coil 15 in the bottom of the recep-' tacle 10 communicates with an upward conical reservoir 15 over which a storage container in the form of a bottle 16, for the liquid to be cooled, is-inverted with maintenance of a fluid tight seal of the bottle mouth with- 6 in said reservoir 15, in a well known manner. As shown the bottle 16 is sustained upright by a flared neck projection 17 upstand-- ing around a receivinglopening in the cover section 13, through w ich the'neck of said bottle is introduced into the reservoir 15'. The liquid is drawn from the cooler 10 under control of a faucet 18 attached to the pro- ]ecting end of a pipe 19 that extends downward within the receptacle 10 and connects into the terminal end of the coil 15. Ordinarily the space within the cooler receptacle 10 is filled with cracked ice, the water within the coil 15 being cooled through contact of the ice with said coil. To convert atypical coil cooler such as 'ust described for use of solid carbon dioxide, first place within the bottom of the receptacle 10 a layer of thermo-insulation 20 which may be a composition of ground cork with a suitable coheringbinder, and thereupon place the refrigerating coil-15 so as to rest on said' insulation. I next superimpose 'upon the coil 15 a thermal transfer element 21, preferably ofporcelain or like-material, capable of communicating the refrigerating effect of solid carbon dioxide modified to preclude freezing. This transfer element 21 has the discous configuration of Fig. IV, with notches 22, 23 to clear the reservoir 15 and the pipe u 19 incidental to introduction into the receptacle 10. From Figs. I and II it willbe noted that the area of the element 21 corresponds substantially to that of the refrigerating coil 15, both being somewhat less in diameter than the interior of the receptacle 10 so that no direct circumferential contact is made .with the wall of said rece tacle. With the discous element 21 in place, com-. pletely fill the receptacle 10 with insulate material 24, except for provision of an upwardly tapered chamber just large enough say, to accommodate a standard pound block B of solid carbon dioxide measuring approximately two by two by four inches, with the block restin on the exposed portion of the top face of tie transfer element 21 as clearly shown in Fi s. I and II. The chamber 25 is accessible rom the top through a counter tapered opening 26-which is protected by a removable plug 27, also preferably of insulate composition.

In the operation of the cooler, converted as described it will be seen that through interposition of the transfer element 21, the cooling effect of the block B of solid carbon dioxide is distributed over the area of the re frigerating coil 15 moderated to such an extent as to maintain the liquid in said coil at a palatable drinking temperature above the freezing point. -By virtue of the heavy insulation 24 surrounding the chamber 25, the

element 21 and the coil 15, losses through radiation are effectively precluded. Under these conditions it is actually demonstrable that a pound of the solid'carbon dioxide will claim:

1. In a liquid cooler adapted for use of solid carbon dioxide or the like as a refrigerant, a refrigerating coil traversed by the liquid to be cooled, and a thermal transfer element in contact with the coil capable of imparting the'cooling effect of the solid carbon dioxidemoderated to the extent of preeluding freezing of the liquid 'within the coil.

2. In a liquid cooler adapted for use of solid carbon dioxide or the like as a refrigerant, a refrigerating coil traversed by the liquid to be cooled, a thermal transfer element in contact with the coil capable of imparting the cooling effect. of the solid carbon dioxide moderated to the extent of precluding freezing of the liquid within the coil, and a acket of heavy insulation surrounding the coil and the thermal transfer element except for provision. of a chamber large enough to accommodate a unit quantity of the solid carbon dioxide in contact with an exposed portion of the surface of said thermal transfer element.

3. Means to convert liquid coolers, for use in them of solid carbon dioxide or the like as a refrigerant, having a horizontal refrigerating coil for traverse of the liquid to be cooled within the bottom of an ice receptacle 7 comprising a thermal transfer element of porcelain or the like capable of imparting "in them of solid carbon dioxide or'the like as a refrigerant, having a horizontal refrigerating coil for traverse of the liquid to be cooled within the bottom of an ice rece tacle, comprising a discous thermal transf dr element having an area equal to that of the coil and resting on the latter in direct contact, said element being formed or porcelain or the like for capacit to impart the coolin effect of the solid car on dioxide moderate to the extent of precluding freezing of the I liquid in the coil.

' 5. Means to convert liquid coolers, for use in them of solid carbon dioxide or the like as a refrigerant, having a horizontal coil for traverse of the liquid to be cooled within the bottom of an ice receptacle, comprising a discous thermal transfer element of porcelain or the like over the coil capable of imparting the cooling effect of the solid carbon dioxide supported thereon moderated to the extent I of precluding freezing of the liquid, and insulation filling the ice receptacle around the refrigerating coil and the thermal transfer element except for provision of a chamber large enough to conveniently accommodate a unit block of the solid carbon dioxide in contact with an exposed portion of the surface of said thermal transfer element.

6. In a liquid cooler adapted for use of solid carbon dioxide or the like as a refrigerant, a refrigerating coil traversed by the liquid to be cooled, a thermo transfer-element in contact with the coilcapable of imparting the cooling effect of the solid carbon dioxide moderated to the extent of precluding freezing of the liquid within the coil, and heavy insulation surrounding the coil and thermo transfer-element except for provision of a chamber to accommodate a block of the solid carbon dioxide in direct contact with a portion of the surface of said thermo transfer-element.

7. Conversion means for liquid coolers of the t pe described comprising, a thermo trans er-element of ceramic material capable of imparting cooling effect from a frigorific binary-compound, in combination with a surrounding enclosure of insulate material providing a chamber to accommodate a unit.

block of said latter material in contact with an exposed surface of the transfer element.

8. Conversion means for liquid coolers of the t pe described comprising, 'a thermo transfer-element of ceramlc material capable of imparting the cooling effect of a frigorific binary-compound, in combination with a surroundin'g'enclosure of insulate material providing an upwardly tapered chamber 'ust large enough to accommodate a unit lock of said latter material in contact'with an exposed portion .of the surface of the transfer element.

9. Conversion means for liquid coolers of the type described comprising, a thermo transfer-element of ceramic material capable of imparting the cooling efiect of a frigorific binary-compound, in combination with a surrounding enclosure of insulate material providing an upwardly tapered chamber having a counter-tapered access opening, said chamber being large enough to accommodate a unit block of the binary-compound in con tact with an exposed portion of the surface of the transfer-element,and a removable closure of similarinsulate material forthe v aforesaid opening.

10. As an article thermo-transfer element of porcelain for liquid coolers and having radial notches therein for the purpose specified.

11. As an article of manufacture a solid thermo-transfer discous-element of porcelain for liquid coolers and having diametrically opposed notches of unequal proportions for the purposes specified. o

In testimony whereof, I a have hereunto signed my name at Philadelphia, Pennsyl;

this 10th day of September, 1928.

vania (THOMAS s. MERRYLEES.

of'manufacture a solid 

